Norwich sex offender returns to prison

A Norwich sex offender returned to prison Tuesday after a probation report said he broke the terms of his release.

JOHN BARRY

A Norwich sex offender returned to prison Tuesday after a probation report said he broke the terms of his release.

Dana Snow, 63, of 120 Laurel Hill Ave., was taken into custody when New London Superior Court Judge Susan Handy raised his bail from $100,000 to $350,000.

Handy said the report from Snow’s probation officer said he possessed pornography and computer equipment in his home, both of which are forbidden under the terms of his probation.

Snow was sentenced on June 30, 2011, to one year in prison followed by 10 years’ probation after pleading guilty to one count third-degree possession of child pornography. He also had to register as a sex offender for 10 years.

Then on Dec. 24, about six months after his release from prison and the start of his probation, Snow was arrested and charged with violating probation. That charge is pending.

The arrest followed several complaints. In August, an unidentified person said Snow had approached neighborhood children while walking his dog and asked them if they wanted to pet the animal. Snow also was looking at his neighbor’s daughter swim in her family’s pool, the complaint said.

In December, Norwich police said, Snow had been seen walking his dog at Veterans Memorial Elementary School grounds during recess and dismissal time, and had approached a group of young girls and asked if they wanted to pet his dog.

As a result of his arrest, Snow’s bail was set at $100,000, he was placed on GPS monitoring and put under house arrest, allowed to leave only for court hearings, probation and attorney visits and to meet with his sex offender groups. He had been in compliance with those strict terms until this month, according to his probation officer’s reports to the court.